BRIEFLY

SEMO volleyball team opens season at home tonight

Southeast Missouri State University's volleyball team, which has won the past five Ohio Valley Conference championships, will open the 1998 season tonight when non-conference foe Saint Louis University comes to Houck Field House for a 7 o'clock match.

The Otahkians went 26-9 last season while SLU was 18-17. The Billikens finished sixth in Conference USA.

SLU leads the series with Southeast 14-13, but the Otahkians won both matches last year.

Woodland volleyball tournament begins tonight

MARBLE HILL -- The annual Woodland Invitational high school volleyball tournament gets under way tonight with two matches.

Third-seeded Meadow Heights plays No. 6 Puxico at 6:30 p.m. while No. 2 Bell City faces No. 7 Advance at 7:30.

The opening round will conclude Wednesday as No. 1 Leopold plays No. 8 Greenville at 6 p.m. and No. 4 Zalma takes on No. 5 Woodland at 7.

The semifinals will be at 7 and 8 p.m. Thursday, with the championship set for 8 p.m. Friday. Also Friday, the consolation final will be at 6, with the third-place match at 7.

Kirk sinks first ace at Kimbeland Country Club

Ronnie Kirk of Cape Girardeau recorded a hole-in-one recently at Kimbeland Country Club in Jackson.

Kirk used a 5-wood to ace the No. 6, 134-yard hole. Witnesses were Kenny Kirk and Steve Miller.